


Burn My Dread

by baileek313



Category: Persona 3, Persona Series, 逆転裁判 | Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney
Genre: Gen, but she makes it work, but that's what character development is for, everyone's immature to a degree in the beginning, mia fey is a disaster, tags to be added as the story goes on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2019-08-11
Packaged: 2020-05-14 11:37:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19272493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baileek313/pseuds/baileek313
Summary: Mia Fey should be lucky. She got a scholarship to an elite private school with little effort. She’s a top notch student and sure to be popular among her peers. That would be the case if trouble didn’t seem to follow her wherever she went. But her strange dreams and these happenings at midnight are something that she can no longer ignore. Although the girl wanted a normal life in Iwatodai, it doesn’t appear as if she’s going to get it.





	1. The Journey Begins

**Author's Note:**

> Basically, the start of an AU where:  
> Mia is Minako/Hamuko  
> Phoenix is Yu/Souji  
> and  
> Apollo is Ren/Akira.
> 
> I apologize in advance if this is not as good as you expect it to be. Mia only has two canon relationships that we know of outside of the Fey family and Phoenix. So, I kinda dipped into the RftA characters to fill out the SEES roster.  
> That being said, after reading this first chapter, you will note that there are some differences between the fic and P3 besides the character swaps. All will be explained in due time, I promise. That's what's fun about this fic: unravelling the mysteries.
> 
> Though, some events will be canon compliant for the most part. What that means is for you, as the reader, to deliberate.
> 
> Enjoy the fic.

_ Time never waits. It delivers all equally to the same end. _

_ You, who wish to safeguard the future, however limited it may be… _

_ You have one year. Go forth without falter, with your heart as your guide... _

 

* * *

 

 

She awoke to the sound of the train rumbling. How she had managed to remain sound asleep throughout nearly the entire train ride was a mystery. She sighed as the remnants of her dream started to fade. A glowing butterfly, huh? Her mother told her about a butterfly like that when she was a kid. Those stories all lead back to one, simple moral.

_ Do not trust the butterfly. _

She glanced out the window. The moon was already high in the sky. How long had she been asleep? A glance at the watch on her wrist made her cringe. It was nearly midnight. She groaned. The train had been delayed for nearly three hours that afternoon. The ride was long enough, and now she had a doubt forming in her stomach that she wouldn’t even be able to start settling in when she got to this new city. She wondered what had happened to cause such a delay.

She sighed once more as the train came to a screeching halt. It had barely been a day, and already she was starting to miss home. But her mother said this would be good for her. It would give her a chance to escape the small mountain town she grew up in and get out in the world. That, and… well… a brand new start in a place where no one knew her was a good thing.

She began to fidget with the charm hanging around her neck as she exited the train. That ache in her chest only grew worse. She hadn’t expected homesickness to sink in this quickly. Hitting the restart button on her social life was probably the best, but being so far away… She could still feel her little sister clinging to her legs for one last hug goodbye.

Wait...

Oh crap, she was supposed to call when she got to the dorm. Which was supposed to be three hours ago. She bit her lip. Her mother would be worried sick… She reached for the phone stowed away in her pocket, pulling it out as quickly as possible.

The clock struck midnight as she flipped it open. The screen of her phone went black, and she came to stop right outside of the station. Every single light of the city had gone off in one fell swoop, as if somebody had flicked a switch. If it wasn’t for the moon hovering in the eerily green sky, then she would be in total darkness. The few amounts of people that inhabited the street at this time were gone, replaced by coffins that were struck into the ground. She felt a chill run up her spine.

To say that the change in the atmosphere was odd was an understatement. Swallowing down the fear caused by the sudden shift, she marched on forward. The grip she had on the strap of her bag tightened as she wove through the darkened streets. She was alone in a town she didn’t know. And the change of the scene did not help her navigation whatsoever.

It felt like almost an hour had passed before she found the dormitory. Biting her lip, she silently prayed that this was the right building. Her anxiety spiked as she grabbed the door handle. A part of her urged her to go forward, and her hand seemed to move on its own.

She entered the dorm. Similar to the town outside, it was dead quiet and empty. There was a lack of coffins, though, as well as some dim lighting. That did little to ease her growing nerves. As did the little girl sitting at the front desk in the lobby.

The girl stared at her as she stepped slowly forward. She had crystal blue eyes cold as ice, and she twirled a piece of her ratty, knotted dark hair around her finger. The child was dressed as if she was a prisoner, wearing frayed striped pajamas that were caked with dirt at the hems.

“Welcome,” said the girl with a soft smile. “You’re late, you know. I’ve been waiting for you for a very long time.”

“You have?” said the newcomer. They sent a little girl to greet her? The girl nodded. She slid forward a folder and held out a pen to her.

“If you wish to proceed, then sign here.” The folder was opened, revealing a single piece of paper with a blank line at the bottom. The newcomer was biting down harder on her lip, threatening to split it with her teeth. 

“It’s a contract,” said the girl, making the newcomer’s eyes snap up to her. Her smile had not once wavered. “There’s no need to be scared, miss. It only binds you into accepting full responsibility for your actions.”

_ Okay, so… standard stuff? _ The newcomer shook her head. She was thinking too much about this. Was she…? Okay, now she was overthinking her overthinking. It was standard stuff, she was tired. All she wanted to do was go to sleep. She took the pen, letting it hover over the paper as she read the last line.

What it said made a pit drop into her stomach. Something about that line… it made her uneasy… What exactly was she signing? She shook her head. God, she was focusing way too much on this. Not wanting to waste another second, she signed her name on the blank line.

_ “I,  _ __ M _ ia Fey _ __ __ _ , chooseth this fate of mine own free will.” _

The creepy little girl seemed to be satisfied that Mia decided to sign her little contract. With a giggle, she closed the folder.

“Very well,” she said, pulling the folder off of the desk. She stared at it before bringing it close to her chest. “Time is something that no one can escape. It will deliver us all to the same end. Wishing won’t make it go away.” She looked back up to Mia, that smile not disappearing for a second.

“And so… it begins…” the girl finished. A giggle escaped her lips as the shadows rose up around her. They consumed her, and before Mia could say another word, she was gone without a trace. Mia blinked, staring at the now empty space.

What the heck just happened? And why did Mia feel like she just signed her soul to the Devil? Or worse, Death itself?

She sighed, adjusting the bag on her shoulder. She was tired, it was late (it had to be at least one in the morning by now). Was she just seeing things? What was she going to do now?

Maybe she could just sleep on the couch for now. There was no one here, they probably all went to bed by this point. Mia would just have to deal with a rude awakening in the morning—

“Who’s there?!” Mia’s thought process stopped as she turned to the staircase at the other end of the room. Standing at the bottom of the stairs was a young woman, only a few years older than Mia by the looks of it. Light brown hair was sticking to her face, and teal eyes were piercing Mia’s own grey. That wasn’t what concerned her. It was the gun that the girl had strapped to her leg.

“How can you…” said the girl, reaching for the weapon. Mia simply stared, unsure about what to do. “Don’t tell me…” She went to make a grab for it. Mia threw up her arms in a feeble attempt to protect herself.

“Wait!”

There was no bang. The only sound Mia heard was heels hitting the floor. She lowered her arms. Descending down the stairs was a young woman, dirty blonde waves resting on her shoulders with her bangs covering one of her eyes. The stern gaze she held never left the girl at the bottom of the staircase.

Once she met with her, the lights flickered on in the lobby, waking the world from its sudden sleep. A glance outside revealed to Mia that everything had returned to normal. Mia looked back to the two women in front of her. The blonde woman’s glare softened as she turned to her. Her companion’s hand left the gun.

“I didn’t think you’d be arriving so late,” said the woman. Okay, so arriving at midnight could not have been a worse first impression to make.

“I am so sorry!” Mia blurted out, digging her nails into the palm of her free hand as the blonde approached. “I know I’m late, but there was a delay on the train, and then this thing happened on my way here and—” Her rambling was cut off when the woman placed her hand on Mia’s shoulder.

“Take a breath before you start hyperventilating.” Mia sighed, but followed through with the woman’s order. “We suspected as much after the report on the evening news. There’s nothing for you to worry about.”

“Thank you, Miss…?”

“Starr. Angel Starr. I’m the advisor for this dorm.” Mia flashed her a weak smile as Ms. Starr withdrew her hand. The girl with the gun was still staring at Mia, with a look sharp enough to cut glass.

“Who’s she?” the stranger asked, walking up to stand beside Angel. Mia shuffled uncomfortably in her shoes.

“She’s a transfer student,” said the advisor, turning towards the girl and keeping her voice low. “It was a last minute decision to assign her here. She’ll eventually be moved to a room in the normal dorm.” The girl glanced at Mia for a second.

“Is it okay for her to be here?” Ms. Starr simply offered her a shrug.

“I guess we’ll see.” Mia cleared her throat.

“I am uh…” she let out a nervous laugh, “I’m standing right here…”

“My apologies,” said Starr before she gestured to the girl behind her. “This is Lana Skye. She’s one of the senior students residing in this dorm.” Mia gave her a soft smile, holding out her hand. Lana was still and silent, staring at the floor. Mia lowered her hand.

“Pleasure to meet you, too.” There was an uncomfortable moment of silence before Starr spoke.

“It’s getting late. Lana?” Lana perked up. “Show Miss Fey to her room. Her things should already be there, so no need to worry about luggage.” Starr sighed. “I’m going to bed.” She had a point. Stealing a quick glance at her watch, Mia— Wait, how was it still midnight? An hour had passed, it had to.

“Come with me.” Lana took Mia by the hand. She slipped out easily from her grasp as she followed her classmate up the stairs. The building stalemate was practically suffocating. Mia had to do something to break it.

“So…” she said, following Lana up yet another flight of stairs. “Um… do… other members of the staff live here?”

“Not really,” Lana replied flatly, not even turning back to face Mia as she spoke. “There wasn’t enough students to fill the dorm, so… There are a handful of students, such as myself. There used to be one of the teacher’s aides that lived here too, but…” Mia raised a brow.

“But…?” Lana shook her head.

“Nothing.”

_ Okay…?  _ That was definitely suspicious. Before Mia could ask more about the dorm’s population, Lana came to a stop at the end of the hall and the door that stood there. She turned on her heel, her face calm and stoic as if she had not thought about pointing a gun at Mia’s face moments before.

“This is it. Shouldn’t be too hard to remember,” said Lana, tapping a finger on the door. “So… uh… any questions?” Well… at least she was talking.

“Uh… besides the students… and Ms. Starr…” There was only one other question Mia wanted to ask. “Um… there wouldn’t happen to be a little girl living here, would there?” Lana stared at her.

“No. Just us, the advisor and another senior. Why do you ask?”

“It’s just… there was this girl who greeted me at the front desk, so I thought…” Mia sighed, shaking her head. “You know what? Nevermind. I’m tired, I was probably just seeing things.” Lana continued to stare.

“...What’s your name?”

“Um… Mia. Mia Fey.” For a split second, Mia could have sworn she saw Lana’s eyes widened. 

“Fey…” she muttered under her breath, as if Mia wasn’t even there. The senior cleared her throat before continuing. “Mia, on your way here, was everything okay?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I—” Lana sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She shook her head. “Nevermind. It seems like you’re alright. Well, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me or Ms. Starr.”

“Alright.” Mia was still unsure about what exactly Lana had been talking about moments before. Lana pressed a key into Mia’s hand before taking her leave. She stood there, listening to the clack of Lana’s shoes as she retreated to the opposite end of the hall. Mia flinched when she heard a door slam. She looked at the door before her. This was her room. This was her home for the time being.

Mia unlocked the door and stepped in. The room seemed as blank as a piece of paper. A layer of dust sat on the desk, and the bed looked like it was stale. The only thing that showed a sign of living were the few boxes stacked in the corner. With a click of her tongue, Mia sighed as she shut the door.

Home sweet home.

Oh shit, home. Right, Mia had to call home.

She dropped her bag onto the dresser, fishing for the phone in her pocket. Flipping it open, she was greeted with a lit screen. That was odd. She could have sworn it was dead when she left the station. She shook her head. A lot of weird things were happening tonight, she was probably just tired and—

Oh god, those were a lot of text messages.

Mia didn’t hesitate. She punched in her mother’s number, pressing the phone to her ear as soon as she was finished. She bit her nail as the dial tone played out. There was a beat when the click hit her ear.

“ _ Mia! _ ”

“Hey, Mom…” Mia said, pulling her nail from her mouth and tacking on a nervous laugh at the end. Oh no, she sounded worried. This is exactly what she had been afraid of.

“ _ Thank Heavens, you’re alright, _ ” said her mother with a sigh. _ “I was beginning to think something happened to you. _ ”

“Nope, I made it here a-okay.” Mia leaned back against the bed. There was no need to worry her mother any further. She would tell her about the details of her trip tomorrow… maybe. “I mean, there were some problems on the train that made me run late, but other than that, everything’s fine.” She heard her mother chuckle, which had to be a good thing, right?

“ _ Maya tried to stay up to talk to you. Unfortunately, that didn’t work out as she planned _ .” A small smile crossed her face. The image of her little sister lying in her mother’s lap as she spoke to her eldest popped into her mind.

“I’ll call her after school tomorrow, I promise.” Mia sighed. “Sorry for calling so late.”

“ _ As long as you’re safe. I’ll leave you to get some rest. Goodnight, Mia. _ ”

“Night, Mom.” She went to take her phone away from her ear.

“ _ And sweetheart?” _ She paused. _ “Things will be better here. I promise. _ ”

“I…” Mia bit her lip. “I know. Love you.”

“ _ I love you, too _ .” Mia hung up, closing her phone with a satisfying snap. It wasn’t much, but her mother’s words did help. Though… it didn’t stop that bubble of doubt and fear that was still churning in her stomach. Things will be better? If she kept out of the public eye, yeah. Maybe she could do her work from her dorm room? No… They wouldn’t let her… would they?

Mia shook her head. It was late. She would have time to dwell on it in the morning. She flopped onto the bed, falling asleep the second her head hit the pillow.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 7, 2005**

**6:27 AM**

**Iwatodai Dormitory**

**Room 306**

 

Mia’s mind wasn’t any more clearer than it was the night before. She was still trying to make sense of everything that happened last night as she buttoned the top latch of her uniform jacket. A little girl, the town suddenly going dark. Not to mention, she had dreamed about the glowing butterfly again. Her mind was nothing but flashes of that butterfly, along with three people: a man, a woman, and an older man seated between them with an unusually long nose. And they might have been in an elevator? Or a clock tower?

What did she eat to mess with her head so much?

Mia sighed as she re-tied the silken cord of her charm around her neck. Why did fate have to make her life so… so difficult? She was barely an adult. Things weren’t supposed to get so complicated until then. But now, she was thrown into a new school where she didn’t know anyone. And those freaky dreams and whatever the hell happened last night were not helping whatsoever.

There was a knock on the door, breaking her thoughts and making Mia jump.

“Hey. It’s Lana.” There was another knock on the door. Lana? “Are you awake?”

“Uh…” Mia spotted her shoes discarded under the desk. How the heck did they end up there? She grabbed them, along with her school bag. “Y-Yeah!” There was a click, and the door opened. Much like Mia, Lana was dressed in her uniform. Unlike Mia, however, she looked more organized and wasn’t carrying her shoes in her hands.

“Good morning,” said Lana, watching as Mia pulled on her shoes. “How did you… sleep?” Mia paused.

…  _ Don’t say anything about the butterfly. Or the woman. Or the guy with the long nose. Or the nice looking guy in the elevator. _

“...I slept fine.” Mia tapped her shoes into place, glancing up at the girl before her. “Lana, what are you doing here?” Last night she had been unnaturally cold towards her. Lana cleared her throat.

“As your upperclassman, I thought I should show you the way to school.” Something in the back of her mind made Mia suspect that wasn’t entirely the case. “Are you ready to go?” Mia sighed, brushing her bangs out of her face and slinging her bag over her shoulder.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Lana simply gave the nervous student a nod. Mia diligently followed after Lana, doing her best to try and match her pace. Aside from a quick explanation from Lana saying that they had to take the monorail to get to school, the entire walk was pretty much… quiet. Honestly, Mia didn’t expect otherwise.

It wasn’t until the train started moving that Lana spoke up. Mia had her eyes glued to the window, watching as the sun made its way into the sky, its rays glittering over the water. 

“You… seem really excited,” said Lana, raising a brow at Mia’s behavior. “About this.” Mia blinked, coming out of the stupor the view put her into.

“Uh… sorry. I came from… a smaller place,” Mia said with a nervous chuckle. “Everything was closer, and I could walk directly to school. This is entirely new for me.” Her eyes caught sight of the window again. They lit up as the train’s path started to stretch out over the sea.

“… Mia?”

“Look at this!” Mia was bouncing on her toes, leaning up against the wall. “It’s like we’re gliding over the water!” Lana had to pull her back when the train started to turn, otherwise Mia would have found herself leaning against the glass.

“You don’t have trains where you come from, do you?” Lana asked as Mia landed flat on her feet.

“No, we do. One train comes in from the city. Even then, the station’s about a fifteen minute walk from the closest building.” She moved her gaze to the ground at the look Lana gave her. Maybe talking about home wasn’t the smartest idea on the first day. “Sorry…”

“Don’t be. I was excited my first day as well.” Lana leaned against the wall. “Our school is on this man-made island called Tatsumi Port. Gekkoukan is in the center. See?” She pointed out the window. “It’s right there.” Mia followed the direction of her finger.

Standing proud in the center of the island was a stark white building. The rooftops were made of glass, and the campus was sprawling with trees and stone pathways. Overall, if she had to describe Gekkoukan, it looked like a school for the elite. The beauty of it all was multiplied by the shifting colors of the leaves.

_ Wow…  _ She grinned. Maybe this wasn’t going to be as bad as she thought.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 7**

**7:01 AM**

**Gekkoukan High School**

**Lobby**

 

Gekkoukan was even more amazing on the inside. The light provided from the clear rooftops seem to make everything glow with its natural light. And it made Mia realize one thing. She felt extremely out of her element. How was a high school even able to pay for all of this? And there was something about this place… Mia couldn’t place her finger on it.

“...and the faculty office is right there to the left.” Wait, had Lana been talking? How long had she been doing that? “Your homeroom teacher should be able to give you a hand. Anymore questions before I go?”

“Uh…” Could she ask her to repeat all that? No, there wasn’t enough time. Biting her tongue, Mia came up with a question that could help her answer all of them. “Who’s my homeroom teacher?”

“I think they’re posted on the bulletin board if you haven’t checked yet.” Mia sighed. Maybe her teacher could help her figure out the answers Lana had given her. “Um… hey. About last night…” Mia blinked, snapping out of her trance. Last night?

“What about it?” Mia asked. There were a lot of things that happened last night. Lana was going to have to be a bit more specific. Lana glanced around at the swarming students before leaning a bit closer to Mia.

“Don’t tell anyone else what you saw,” said Lana, keeping her voice low. She backed off as Mia gave her a hesitant nod. “I’ll see you later.” She turned on her heel, making her way into the crowd of students until she disappeared from Mia’s sight. What the heck just happened?

Mia sighed. Just when she thought things were getting to something that could be qualified as normal. Well, if fate decided to throw ever abnormal thing her way, Mia was going to throw fate a curveball and force her life to be as normal as possible. First things first. She had to get settled here. And find her homeroom.

Mia pushed through a few of the first year students and made her way to the bulletin board. This is where Lana said all the homerooms were posted, right? Right. Biting her lip, Mia began to scan the rosters. She stared at the list.

She couldn’t find her name.

No, wait. There was a small note with her name one it.

_ “Mia Fey – Room F-2”.  _ Mia sighed.

_ But no name for a teacher… great. Maybe I should just go to F-2. See what happens. _ Yeah, that had to be it.

And that was how Mia found herself wandering through the halls, trying to find her homeroom class. It was strange. It felt like something was pulling the strings in the back of her mind, like a mother leading her child through the streets. Though, it still took her a couple of minutes to find F-2. Hiking up her courage, Mia opened the door without a second thought. Sitting at the desk at the head of the classroom was a woman, who perked up upon hearing the door opening.

“Are you the new student?” she asked. Mia let out a breath she didn’t even realize she had been holding.

“That would be me: Mia Fey.” She shut the door. “Are you my homeroom teacher?” Much to Mia’s relief, the woman nodded. She pushed back into her chair, opening one of her desk drawers.

“Eleventh grade, correct?” Mia nodded as she walked up to her teacher. The woman withdrew a file and began flipping through its pages.

“Let’s see… in 2001…” the teacher began to mutter under her breath, “that was what, four years ago?”

“Just… Just about.” She kept her fingers crossed behind her back, silently praying that she didn’t mention—

“Your family was driving back from the city when…” Her teacher gasped, immediately closing the file. Mia stared at the floor. Of course. They had to put  _ that  _ in the file. “I’m sorry… I’ve been so busy, I didn’t have time to read this beforehand.”

“Um… I-It’s fine… It was a long time ago, it’s fine.” It wasn’t that long ago, and every time the anniversary came around, Mia would lock herself in her room and not come out for the rest of the day. But, that wasn’t something to dwell on right now. Perhaps picking up on her student’s tension, her teacher cleared her throat and stowed the file back in its drawer.

“Let me start over,” she said, shutting the drawer. She held out her hand. “I’m Ms. Toriumi. I teach Composition. Welcome to our school.” Mia shook it. It was better to forget about what happened. Well, it wasn’t like she remembered it anyway. The entire event was a hazy, heat-driven blur.

Didn’t mean didn’t it still hurt.

“Pleased to meet you,” Mia said with a forceful grin.

“My, aren’t you polite? Girls like you should be an example for others.” Oh, if only she knew. “Before classes begin, we need to go to the auditorium. The Welcoming Ceremony will be starting soon. Follow me.” Mia gave her teacher a nod before following her out of the classroom.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 7**

**7:39 AM**

**Gekkoukan High School**

**Auditorium**

 

About five minutes into listening to the principal talk, Mia wished she were somewhere else. This just had to be the one thing that didn’t change, huh? Having to hear someone like this drone on about things she already knew: basic school rules, hopes for the school year, etc. Mia sighed, leaning back in her seat. She could hear the students around her whispering about something. Well, whispering wasn’t the right word. They were blocking out her own thoughts.

“I heard we got a transfer student.” Mia glanced over at the boys sitting a few seats down from her. Much like her, they lacked interest in the principal's speech. They seemed to have found interest in something else instead… something she wished she hadn’t heard them talk about.

“Yep,” said the other with a nod and smirk. “I’ve seen her, too. She came to school with Skye. Probably live in the same dorm.”

“Is she hot?”

“Definitely. Take a look. She’s sitting right there.” Mia felt her face go red as the boys laid eyes on her. She stared at the floor, digging her nails into her knees. Why were they talking about her? Did they realize she could hear them?

“You think if I—”

“I hear talking from Toriumi’s class,” piped up someone at the end of the row, louder than the boys had been. Mia glanced over, catching sight of who she believed to be one of the teachers giving Toriumi a look. She rushed over to quiet her students, leaving Mia to sigh. She hadn’t been here for a full day and already there were rumors.

Mia huffed, sinking into her seat as the ceremony dragged on.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 7**

**2:16 PM**

**Gekkoukan High School**

**Courtyard**

 

No matter where she went, high school seemed to be the same. The day dragged on, with nothing but the standard ‘getting to know you’ stuff to fill out Mia’s classes. Oh well, it wasn’t worth complaining about. It wasn’t like she had any homework or assignments to do yet. Next week maybe.

“Hey!” A yelp escaped Mia’s throat as a hand clapped her shoulder. She had just gotten out of the main doors. Freedom was just out of her reach, the gate in her view. Why did someone have to catch her now?

A chuckle fell on her ears.

“You’re frozen like a deer in headlights.” The hand slid off her shoulder and its owner entered her view. It was a young man, around the same age as Lana with black hair and brown eyes. He wore Gekkoukan’s uniform, messed up by the bag slung across his shoulder.

“Didn’t mean to scare ya that much,” said the student. Mia only continued to stare, though the fact that he no longer had a hold on her relieved a bit of that initial tension in her shoulders.

“Who are you?” was the only thing that Mia said.

“Me?” he replied, pointing to himself. Mia nodded. He offered a wide grin. “I’m Neil. Nice to meet ya. I heard we got a transfer student, and I know how tough it is bein’ the new kid… So I thought I’d check up on you, make sure you weren’t freaking out on your first day.”

“At it already?” There was a sigh from behind. Mia let out one of her own as Lana strode up to the pair. She didn’t think she would ever be this grateful to see her dormmate.

“What?” said Neil, sliding his hands into his pockets with a shrug. “I was just bein’ friendly.”

“If you say so,” said Lana with yet another sigh. Neil looked between the two girls.

“You two friends?” Before either one of them could get out a response, Neil chuckled. “Better than you did on your first day, isn’t it?” He nudged Lana’s arm.

“Shut up.” Lana batted him away. “She’s in the same dorm as me. I met her last night, and Ms. Starr told me to show her around.” Neil groaned, the grin falling away into a pout.

“Did she forget I’m here too? C’mon, lemme in on the fun!” Did  _ they _ forget that Mia was standing between them? If this conversation was about her, shouldn't she at least get to say something?” Neil’s eyes widened as things went on, Mia still silenced. “Wait, so that rumor that you two came to school together is true? The whole junior class is buzzing about it, and it’s kinda hard to ignore.”

“Cut it out. You know I hate dealing with rumors. I mean, I’m used to it, but she just got here. And as their upperclassman, you should be discouraging such behavior.” Neil only gave her a shrug. Lana sighed, running a hand through her hair before she turned to Mia, her expression much softer than it was when she was speaking to Neil. “Listen, I’ve gotta go take care of some archery team stuff, so I won’t be able to show you the way back to the dorm, alright?” Mia gave her a short nod.

“It’s okay. I can find the way to the station myself.” With a nod to her younger, Lana turned to Neil, her eyes narrowing.

“Don’t try anything funny, you got that, Marshall?” Neil merely raised his hands in surrender. Lana turned on her heel, heading down the hall and off to her club meeting.

“Nag!” Neil called out to Lana before she turned the corner and disappeared. He huffed a sigh, muttering something under his breath that Mia couldn’t quite make out. Mia bit her lip as her gaze wavered on Neil.

“You didn’t come here to do any… funny stuff, did you?” she asked, Lana’s farewell words playing back in her mind. Neil stared at her blankly before turning red.

“Me? Never!” he said with a rapid shake of his head and his hands raised in his own defense. “Just came to clear some stuff up. If you ever have a problem, you can tell me about it, alright?” Mia stared.

_ No matter how weird someone is a friend is still a friend.  _ A friend. Did he wanted to be her friend? Is that why he had stared talking. She sighed, the small amount of tension that was still lingering behind in her body ebbing out into calm. She gave Neil a nod.

“I’ll remember that,” Mia flashed a grin as she and Neil began gingerly making their way towards the gate and after school freedom.

“Cool. How about you let me walk you to the station? Since Skye can’t?” Neil fidgeted with the strap of his bag, pushing it aside so he could draw an ‘X’ over his chest. “I promise, no funny stuff.”

“Sure.” She wasn’t going to say no to that. Especially since she didn’t know the city as well as Neil possibly did. Mia could have sworn that his grin grew wider as he nodded.

“Come on! Don’t want to be late and miss the train! Trust me, that’s never fun…”

The walk and subsequent train ride home was filled with a vibrant conversation between Mia and Neil. And she had to admit, it felt good to talk to someone without any worries. He wasn’t playing her, or going to turn on her in the next moment with his friendliness with some sick joke. It was all genuine. And by the time she returned to the dorm, it was safe to say that Mia had made her first friend.

Maybe her mother was right. Maybe Iwatodai and Gekkoukan was just the fresh start that Mia needed. Here, she was a normal teenage girl. And that was enough for her.


	2. I am Thou, Thou art I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We all must wake up from dreams eventually. That normality Mia wanted so much starts to slip through her fingers until one night at midnight during the full moon. Maybe listening to the voice in her head isn't a bad idea after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize if this chapter seems a bit dragged out, jumbled and a bit rushed. I tried my best to make this part smoother than it normally would be. But hey! We finally get to see Mia's Persona! I wanted to incorporate the design I came up with in the story, so there is an image at the end. I didn't want to break the flow of everything. That, and if you don't want to see it, you don't have to.
> 
> The bees are inspired by my sister.
> 
> It will make sense at the end of the chapter. I promise.

 

**September 13, 2005**

**8:08 PM**

**Iwatodai Dormitory**

**Room 306**

 

The first few weeks at Gekkoukan had gone by without much of an incident. Which in Mia’s opinion, seemed to be a miracle. She had never gone this long before with that feeling: the feeling that she was just the same as everyone else. Mia wasn’t the one everyone was staring at it. Well, people were staring, but Lana reassured her that it was only because she was coming from the Iwatodai dorm.

And the dorm. Mia still had yet to figure out the mystery behind it. Neither Lana or Ms. Starr had mentioned a little girl living in the building. In fact, Mia was the youngest person staying there. And she still to meet the unnamed third student living in the dorms as well. Whomever it was, they were always out before Mia even dragged herself out of bed in the morning. Whenever she got home, she always seemed to miss them. Mia was going to catch them one day. No one could avoid her forever.

But with schoolwork, that would have to wait. Mia mentally cursed the teacher that gave her this assignment. Any homework assigned in the beginning of the school year was usually a review of the previous year’s work. However, this man had thought it wise to start on the new stuff right away, not giving any of his students to chance to refresh their memories.

That could serve as the best explanation as to why Mia had locked herself in her room, and vowed not to rest until her homework was done. She even brought dinner up to her room after refusing to come down.

Unfortunately, it was in that room that Mia’s wish came to an end. A buzzing began in the back of her head. She brushed it off as the headache that was developing from her mounting frustration. Then, words started to form, becoming more and more coherent like whisper in her ear. Mia tried to ignore it, focusing on the worksheet in front of her instead.

_ “Let me out.” _ Mia froze. The grip tightened on her pencil to the point that her hand was shaking. She held her breath. Mia shook her head, going on with her assignment. She tried to fill her thoughts with facts and figures that she would forget in the morning. All of that was drowned out by the voice’s steady chant.

“Go away…” Mia muttered under her breath, gritting her teeth. Couldn’t have picked a better time than when Mia needed to concentrate to open its mouth, huh?

_ “You can’t hide. There is danger. _ ” Mia huffed a sigh. She didn’t have time for this. Frankly, she never had time for this, but the voice in her head didn’t seem to understand that little concept.

“Leave me alone,” Mia said, remembering what her mother had advised her to do if something like this happened while she was at Gekkoukan. She stared down at the assignment in front of her. “You’re not real.”

_ “Mia. _ ” A stone is thrown directly upward— _ “Mia.”  _ —from a height of thirty feet— _ “MIA!” _ Mia slammed her pencil down on the desk with a growl.  _ “You can’t hide from this.” _

“Shut up!” She dug her hands into her hair, leaning over the desk. What would it take for this voice to go away?! “Shut up, shut up, shut up!”

The voice was yelling at her. She could feel something grabbing her shoulders and shaking her. Mia stood up with enough speed to knock over her chair. The voice was getting louder, louder, and louder still.

She dropped down, doubling over so that her forehead rested on her knees. Everything that she want to shout getting caught in her throat and morphing into choked sobs as tears started to roll down her cheeks. Pain throbbed against her skull. Every time.  _ Every damn time _ .

“Leave me alone!” she cried out, batting away at the air to get whatever was holding her to let go. The voice quieted down after that, muttering a quick ‘I’m sorry’ under its breath before fading away into her subconscious. Mia was left alone.

She could hear footsteps slamming against the floor outside of her room. There was a banging knock on her door.

“Mia? Mia?! Mia!” There was another knock. Lana. It was Lana. God, had she heard her? Without Mia’s consent, the door swung open. There were more footsteps, and Mia felt a pair of hands on her shoulders. “Are you alright? I heard screaming and…”

“I’m fine…” Mia said, only now noticing how hoarse her voice was. She kept her fingers crossed that Lana was the only one who heard her yelling. “Don’t worry about me, I’m fine…”

“You’re not fine.” Even when she was worried, Lana sounded irritated with Mia.

“I’m… I’m fine… Just a… a h-headache.” It wasn’t a lie exactly. Her head did hurt. It’s just that wasn’t what had caused her tears. “It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine if you’re like this.” Lana hooked her arms under Mia’s, pulling the girl onto her feet. She draped Mia’s arm over her shoulder the moment she saw the younger starting to stumble. “Come on, I think Ms. Starr might have something to help.” Mia was only capable of nodding.

She let Lana lead her down the stairs, the other not letting her go for a second. As they got closer to the downstairs lobby, Mia could hear voices echoing up the staircase.

“...Stress my ass. It has to be  _ them _ . Otherwise, it’s not worth my time.”

“You have a one-track mind.” That was Angel. But who was she talking to? Mia didn’t recognize that other voice.

“When I want to do something, I go ahead and do it. What’s thinking worth if you don’t act upon it?” Mia heard Ms. Starr sigh.

“Will you be okay on your own?”

“Don’t worry. Just a little practice. I’ll be fine.” As the girls began to descend down the stairs, Mia caught sight of a jacket before the door shut. She grimaced at the echo it made. Angel was staring at it, a book still open in her lap.

“You reckless ass…” Lana and Mia hit the bottom step, drawing Ms. Starr’s attention towards them. “Lana, Mia. Can I help you?”

“I… um…” Mia winced at the sound of her own voice bouncing off of the walls. Did it always echo in here? Ms. Starr raised a brow, closing her book.

“Are you feeling alright?”

“She says she has a headache,” Lana explained as Mia pulled away from the hold she had on her, leaning up against the bannister for support instead.

“It’s fine,” said Mia, forcing out a chuckle to try and take the stress off of the situation, “I get them a lot.” Both Lana and Ms. Starr were staring at Mia now.

“Are they usually this bad?” Mia could only offer Lana a small shrug. It wasn’t the headache that was bad. It was everything that had lead up to it. Angel stood up, the concern on her face more evident now than before.

“Are you sure that you’re alright?” she asked. 

“Yeah,” Mia replied with a hasty nod. “I’m just kind of used to it by now, so… Didn’t the school tell you?” Ms. Starr sighed.

“Sorry. I haven’t been able to look over any files yet. Anyway, what you’re looking for is in the co-ed bathroom down here. If you need anything else, let me know.”

“Thank you.” Mia pulled away from the bannister. At least the pain dulled down enough for her to walk on her own. She made her way over to the bathroom Angel had directed her to. She had just stepped inside when Ms. Starr’s and Lana’s voices carry over from the lobby.

“Angel, I heard her shouting.”

“I heard her as well… what she was saying…” Mia tightened her grip on the doorknob. Shit. Had the entire dorm heard her? “I want you to keep an eye on her.”

“Why?” There was a beat. “You don’t really think…”

“Skye, don’t let her out of your sight.” Mia bit her lip as she closed the bathroom’s door.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 17, 2005**

**8:31 PM**

**Iwatodai Dormitory**

 

Lucky for Mia, Lana didn’t seem to be the type of person to ask questions. Even with how many that she wanted to ask in the beginning of her stay at Iwatodai. Mia, eventually, brushed off what she had heard as nothing more than concern.

She decided to focus instead on her studies and trying to memorize the layout of Iwatodai. She could spend days wandering around the streets, attempting to embed the mental map she was making into her mind. Saturdays were the perfect days to do that. Mia would return late in the afternoon after getting lost for a few hours for dinner.

That day, however, was different. She might have. actually gotten lost this time. She missed dinner, having to stop at a nearby takeout place for her meal. When Mia finally returned to the dorm, she found an unfamiliar man talking with Lana in the lobby. She stared at the two of them, not sure whether to interrupt or just slink around and—

Their attention was drawn to Mia the moment the door shut.

“Oh, she’s back,” Mia heard Lana mutter before she gestured her over. Linking her hands behind her back, Mia strode over, not taking her eyes off of the man for a second.

“So,” he said as soon as Mia joined Lana’s side, “this is our new guest.”

“Um… hello?” Mia said, an eyebrow raised as she took in the strange appearance of the man talking to Lana. He was about half a foot taller than both of them and was far older than either of them, if his rapidly graying hair was a sign of anything. The bright orange suit he wore was practically blinding, reflecting in the lenses of his glasses. Lana cleared her throat, effectively snapped Mia from her stupor.

“Mia,” said Lana, giving the girl a nudge, “this is Damon Gant: the chairman for the school.”

“Good evening,” said the chairman with a grin. “I apologize for the confusion regarding your accommodations. However, it may take a while longer before you receive the proper room assignment.”

“Um…” The grip Mia had on her own hands grew tighter. “Is that all you came here for?” Gant laughed.

“Of course not. I came to welcome you, of course.”

“Uh-huh.” Lana sighed.

“He came here to talk with Ms. Starr,” she explained before turning to Gant. “I’ll go get her.”

_ Lana, please don’t leave me alone with this guy…  _ Unfortunately, Mia’s silent prayer didn’t get through to Lana. She held back a groan as she watched Lana disappear up the stairs. Now she was alone with Gant. Great. ...maybe she could sneak away somehow. Lie about having homework she needed to do...

“So, Miss Fey—” Mia jumped to attention. “How are you enjoying your stay so far?”

“It’s fine…” Mia shifted her stance, “everything’s fine.”

“You seem a little on edge, Fey.” Well, to be fair, she was just left alone with a man she barely even knew. That… and there were a lot of things going on here that Mia still wanted to know the answer to. Every time she tried to ask either Lana or Ms. Starr something, they always would change the subject. ...maybe now was the time to get her answers.

“Things are a little… odd. Like the first night I got here…” Time for her own little Q&A... it was best to start at the beginning. “Does a girl live in the dorm at all? Like, a little girl. About ten years old.”

“I assure you. You and Skye are the only girls in the dorm.” That’s what Lana had said, but... “From what I heard, you arrived late. You were probably just tired. I wouldn’t worry about it. It’s bad for your complexion, you know.”

Mia bit back a groan. Something didn’t seem right. There was something that Gant wasn’t telling her, she could feel it. The only thing Mia didn’t know any detail about was Lana keeping an eye on her. Then again, she suspected that was most likely due to her breakdown the other day. But there was no real reason for Lana or Ms. Starr to tell him about that… right?

“Speaking of which,” you must be tired from all the excitement. You should go to bed early. As they say, ‘The early bird catches the bookworm’!” Mia bit back another groan as she nodded.

“You’ll get used to his lame jokes.” Mia turned her attention to the stairs as Lana and Ms. Starr made their descent. Mia let out a little sigh.

“Well, um,” she started taking a small step back and towards the staircase herself. “It seems like you two have something important to talk about. I’m going to bed. Goodnight!”

“Mia, it’s not even that late,” Lana commented as Mia rushed past her and Angel.

“...I know!” But she had spent the entire day walking around. She wanted to as much as her legs were screaming for her to sit down, Mia stood at the top of the staircase and out of sight from those below. She wouldn’t say it out loud, but her curiosity had gotten the better of her. She leaned against the wall, listening carefully to the conversation going on down below.

“And she retained her human form?” said Gant, the jovial tone he originally had when speaking to Mia completely gone now.

“Would I be telling you this if she didn’t?” Mia heard Ms. Starr state in a rather harsh tone. “She has the potential. We know she does. You’ve read her file. You’ve seen what it says, just as much as I have. If her—”

“You know what would happen if you did that, Starr.” Angel sighed.

“It would clear up a lot of things. She knows we’re set up here. Why else would Miss Fey end up at Gekkoukan? And this dorm for that matter? If she wanted her to avoid any of this, why send Mia Fey here?”

“That’s not of any concern. In any case, continue monitoring her.” Mia dug her nails into the wall.

“Yes, sir.” She didn’t want to hear anymore. Moving as fast as her legs would allow, she hurried up to her dorm room. First it was her and Lana and now this? Whatever was going on in this dorm, it left a horrible feeling in Mia’s stomach.

 

* * *

 

 

**???**

**???**

**???**

 

The gentle melody of a piano filled Mia’s ears as she drifted off to sleep. Calm and peace overtook her, lulling her into darkness.

“Master…” echoed a voice from the void. “Master Mia Fey…” Mia forced her eyes open. Standing in front of her was a bright blue door. She found herself moving towards it, not being able to stop her body. She opened the door to a flash of light.

Behind the strange door was an even stranger room. The entire room was varying in shades of a soft, velvety looking blue. It seemed to be in motion, almost like an elevator. In fact, Mia was pretty sure this  _ was _ an elevator. She could see the cage-like door that served as the back wall and the unreadable floor number above it.

In front of her was a simple chair, a table with a blue cloth covering it and a small sofa. Sitting there, as if waiting for her, was an old man with an unusually long nose dressed in a suit with a wide grin. Standing next to him was a young woman with short, platinum blonde hair and golden eyes. She wore a bright blue dress, boots and gloves, overall giving her the appearance of a flight’s stewardess. She had a thick book tucked under her arm.

“Welcome to the Velvet Room,” said the man. Mia turned around, hoping to leave before things got worse. The door had disappeared. The man gestured for Mia to take a seat in front of the desk. With no other option left, she sat down.

“Who are you?” Mia asked, placing her hands in her lap and her fingers curling around the fabric of her pants.

“My name is Igor,” he told Mia with that grin never once breaking as he spoke to her “…I am delighted to make your acquaintance.” He gestured to the woman standing next to him. “This is Elizabeth. She's a resident here, like myself.”

“Pleased to meet you,” said the woman, Elizabeth, with a short bow. Mia could only provided a nod in return.

“This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter… Only those who have signed the contract can enter this place…” The man slid a piece of paper forward. Mia recognized her name scribbled down at the bottom. When had she signed that? She couldn’t remember…

Oh. Oh wait. That contract she signed the night she arrived. Is that was it really was? A contract for this… Velvet Room? Did that mean the man knew the kid Mia had met then? Were they connected somehow? Either way, Mia didn’t get the feeling that she did when she met with the girl. The man… Igor… his presence put her at ease. Something told her she could trust him.

“Henceforth, you shall be welcome here in the Velvet Room,” Igor continued. “You are destined to hone your unique ability, and you will require my help to do so. I only ask one thing in return… that you abide by the contract, and assume responsibility for the choices you make.”

“I…” Mia relaxed the grip she had on her PJs. “I think I understand…” She really didn’t. Sure, she could take full responsibility for her actions. That was easy enough. But ability? What was he talking about?

“Hold on to this…” Igor gestured to the woman standing next to him. With a curt nod, the woman strode over to Mia. Elizabeth pulled something from a pocket on her dress, not giving Mia a glimpse at it as she pressed the object into the plan of her hand. She only got a good look at the item when Elizabeth slid her hand away. It was a dark blue key. The end of it was decorated with a mask split in two: one half white, and the other half black.

Mia stared down at the key Elizabeth had given her. She closed her hand around it.

“There is still one more resident of this room, who unfortunately could not be present for your arrival,” Igor continued, making Mia’s head snapped up to focus on him again. “But I’ll make sure you three are properly introduced. Another time, perhaps. ‘Til we meet again…” 

Darkness took over Mia’s vision as the music started to fade out. She fell back into the peace of sweet dreams she had sought out in the first place. Her dream faded into her memory, the music lingering in her subconscious.

The key was in the palm of Mia’s hand when she woke up, safe and sound in her dorm.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 18, 2005**

**7:14 PM**

**Paulownia Mall**

 

Lana offered to take Mia to the local mall nearby that afternoon. Given what she had heard last night, Mia wanted more than anything to decline the offer. Though, she couldn’t quite do that. Despite being in Iwatodai for so long, there were a few things Mia still needed to stock up on that she forgot to pack. Lana seemed pleased when Mia said ‘yes’, dragging her out the door before she could even put on her shoes.

When they arrived, Lana explained that a lot of Gekkoukan students came here after school. Upon seeing it herself, Mia could understand why. There was a karaoke bar and a CD shop. There was a café that was filled to the brim with people. Mia also caught sight of a nightclub that Lana promptly steered her away from, saying that she was too young to even think about going there.

Mia lost track of how long they had been there. She was still trying to figure out why Lana had invited her out. She had been fairly cold the first time they had met, then emotionally distant. The only time Mia could recall Lana showing any sort of kindness was the night when she found her on the floor. And she was still unsure if it was sincere or just pity. Maybe it was because of what she overheard last night. That seemed like a possibility.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a growing headache in the back of her mind. The voice was just muttering to itself, not towards Mia at all. At this point, she was ready to ask what it was going on about just to get it to be quiet. The buzzing background it provided was starting to hurt.

“Are you alright?” Lana asked when she noticed the younger girl rubbing at her temples.

“Yeah…” Mia said with a sigh. “Just a headache.”

“Maybe we should head back to the dorm.” Mia stepped out of Lana's reach when the girl went for her wrist.

“Why? So Ms. Starr can keep an eye on me so that you don’t have to?” Lana stared at her.

“What are you talking about?” she asked, an eyebrow raised.

“I overheard you talking with Ms. Starr and Gant last night.” The color drained from Lana’s face as Mia’s eyes narrowed. “Keep an eye on me? Monitor me? What was that all about?”

“Ms. Starr is just worried about you.”

“That’s not true.” It couldn’t have been true with all that they were saying. Starr was concerned about something, and Mia’s well-being wasn’t it. “What were you all talking about? My file? Poetenial? What the heck were you going on about?

“It’s nothing to be concerned over.”

“If you’re watching me like a hawk, it sounds like something I should be worried about.”

“Mia…” This had to be the first time Mia had seen Lana so flustered. Did they think they could get away with something like this without Mia finding out?

“Did you even want to come out here with me today? Or did you just want an easier way to spy on me?” Lana stammered before finding the right thing to say.

“I never said that.” Not the right thing to say.

“Then why did you?” Lana was quiet. Mia sighed, shoving her hands deep into her pockets. “I actually thought for a moment that you wanted to be my friend.”

“Mia…” Whatever Lana was going to say, Mia didn’t want to hear it. She didn’t want to hear anymore excuses. She was just sick and tired of all of this.

“But I guess I was wrong because someone who actually wanted to be my friend wouldn’t lie to me and go behind my back!”

“Mia!” She was already heading towards the mall’s entrance. She didn’t want to hear anymore of this.

Mia failed to notice how bright the rising moon was amidst all of her anger. She was quiet the entire trip back to the dorm. She kept herself a few paces in front of Lana, her irritation not simmering down for a second. Anything that Lana was trying to say fell deaf on her ears.

“Welcome back—” Angel began from her usual place on the couch when the students returned. Mia slammed the door shut behind her, making the advisor wince.

“I’m going upstairs,” Mia said flatly, cutting off Starr before she could say anything about Mia’s use of force. The door swung open again, and Mia was already halfway across the lounge.

“Mia!” Lana called out.

“Leave me alone!” Mia reached the stairs. If they followed her up to her dorm… Starr had stood up, staring at Mia with a raised brow.

“Ms. Fey…?” she began. Mia hurried up the stairs.

“I’m fine!” was all she fired off. She didn’t want to hear it from either of them. Mia rushed up to her dorm room, seething with every step she took. The moment she placed her hand on the doorknob of her room, she heard Angel’s voice echo up from the lobby. 

“ _ What _ ?!” Well, it seemed like Lana didn’t waste any time in dropping the bomb. She didn’t care. She entered her room, slamming the door behind her. She just wanted this day to be done and over with.

_ “Mia… _ ” And now this. The voice had quieted down once Mia had started going off on Lana, but now that she was away from all that, it decided to pipe up again? That’s it. Mia was done. She was done with today. She just wanted it to end.

“Leave me alone…” Mia said through her teeth. She felt phantom hands on her shoulders.

_ “Please… let me…” _

“You’re not real. Go away and leave me alone!” Her own voice echoed off the wall.

_ “I… understand…”  _ There was quiet in the room. All Mia could hear were Lana and Starr’s voices being carried throughout the dorm by the air vents. She just wanted this day to end. She stripped herself of her clothes, quickly changing into the first set of pajamas she could get her hands on.

Mia was a normal girl. A normal, teenage girl. She didn’t have any strange abilities, she wasn’t being spied on by her classmates and advisor. She didn’t hear voices in her head. She was just a normal transfer student from a small, mountain town.

...but no amount of wishing and hoping would change the truth about what was waiting for her as danger grew closer with the passing of each second.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 18**

**The Dark Hour**

**Iwatodai Dormitory**

**Room 306**

 

Mia cracked one of her eyes open. Noise pounded at her skull. Groggily, she pushed herself up and out of bed. She hadn’t even remembered falling asleep. And what the hell was that racket? Her eyes caught sight of her window. The world outside was the same sick shade of green as the night Mia first came to the dorm.

She rushed to her window. Down below were scattered coffins, red puddles… everything was exactly the same. Except… Except for the massive black blob at the foot of the building. She could make out two figures below fighting it. One of them… she could recognize blonde hair in the dark light. Was that Starr? Who the hell was that with her?

She wanted to know. Though common sense told Mia to stay in her room, curiosity got the better of her. She pulled on her sneakers. She grabbed the first jacket she could find — her school one — and threw it on. She didn’t have time to worry about damaging it. She had to go and check out what was going on down below.

That’s what the initial plan was, at least. A loud pounding resounded from her door, making Mia jump.

“Mia!” shouted a frantic voice on the other side of the door. There was another series of bangs. “Wake up!” Even without the door swinging open, Mia could figure out who had made the attempt to break down her.

“Lana?” Mia said, staring at the girl before her. She was still dressed in her day clothes, with the exception of the bright red band around her left arm and the gun strapped to her leg.

“I don’t have time to explain. We have to get to safety now!”

“What are you—?” Mia let out a yelp as Lana grabbed her arm.

“No time! Explain later! Follow me!” Mia didn’t have much choice on the matter. Lana dragged her out of her room, only letting go when Mia started to run at the same pace she was. As strange as all of this was, Mia decided that given how freaked out Lana seemed to be, it was probably best to listen to her. She would ask questions later. For now, running seemed the best option.

Lana lead Mia down to the first floor. She tugged the girl around the corner when she tried to make a break for the ground level. They remained at the staircase. They came to a halt, with Mia leaning against the bannister. 

“Alright. We should be safe for now—” Lana cut herself off with a wince, pressing a finger to her ear. Safe from what? “Yes! Loud and clear!” Was she… was Lana talking to herself? Mia didn’t see any sort of bluetooth on her ear or something like that. Lana went pale. “… What?! Fall back!”

Mia didn’t need to be told twice. Lana grabbed her by the wrist, leading her back up the stairs. Mia jerked away again, following Lana up the twisting steps. She could see the walls starting to shake. Something outside was screeching. Mia couldn't figure out what it was. It didn’t sound like anything that she knew. It didn’t sound human.

The pair kept moving, running higher and higher as fast as their legs could carry them. Eventually, they couldn’t run anymore. Lana threw open the door on the top most floor, pushed Mia out and slammed it behind her. Mia would no longer make fun of any actor in a horror movie running to the roof.

“Okay. The door’s locked.” Lana let out a heavy sigh, putting on a weak grin that was probably meant to reassure Mia. “I think we’re safe now…” Mia gave her a short nod. But… safe from what?

Mia got her answer in the form of the concrete under her feet shaking. Both she and Lana turned. Climbing up the edge of the roof was a horrible looking creature that struck fear into Mia’s heart. It was a wriggling black mass made of arms and hands. Most of them holding knives. The center arm held a large, blue mask. The empty eyes seemed to ignite upon spotting the two students.

“You have got to be kidding me…!” Lana shouted in disbelief. “It climbed up the wall…!?”

“What… What  _ is _ that thing?!” Mia cried out, unable to take her eyes off of the thing.

“We call things like that Shadows!” Lana snatched up the gun from her side. Her movement breaking the hold the monster had on her, Mia stared at it. It was the same gun that Lana was carrying the night they first met. Instead of pointing it at the monster… the shadow, whatever, like Mia had expected, Lana turned it around and pressed the barrel to her forehead with a trembling hand. Mia’s eyes went wide.

“L-Lana?!” Mia reached out to her, to try and pull the gun away from her. She understood that Lana didn’t want to die to this thing (frankly, neither did she), but this was never the answer! Before Mia could even take a step forward, something echoed throughout her mind. A phantom hand grabbed her wrist.

_ “NO!”  _ Something jerked her back, keeping her from getting anywhere near Lana. Mia grit her teeth. Of all times now?! She couldn’t do this now!  _ “You must fight! We must fight! Release me! Let me free!”  _ Mia grit her teeth, digging her hands into her scalp.

“Shut up!” Mia shouted, stumbling back and threatening to tear out her hair. “Get out of my head!”

_ “I cannot leave! I am you! I am tied to you — to your soul! You can’t rid yourself of who you are!”  _ Lana turned, lowering her gun upon hearing Mia’s shouting.

“Mia?” Her attention had been completely torn away for the creature. It shot forward, one of its free hands throwing Lana across the roof. She skidded against the ground. She had lost her grip on the gun in the process. It was left between the two of them, and only a few feet away from Mia.

“Lana!” Mia whipped around the face the Shadow monster. She staggered back as it crawled forward. She tripped over her own feet, falling flat on her ass.

_ “I will protect you, as I always have! Let me out! Free me so that we may fight!” _

“N-No…!” Mia bit her lip, letting out a yelp as she scrambled out of the way from one of the Shadow's attacks. “You’re just a voice in my head…” That’s all that she had been told her entire life. Ignore the voice in her head. It was nothing, it wasn’t real.

“Mia… Mia!” Lana shouted. “The Evoker! Grab the Evoker!” Mia simply glanced between her and the Shadow. Lana groaned, trying to push herself back up. She dropped to her knees with a cry. Her hand wrapped around her ankle. She groaned again. “The gun — grab the gun!”

“Wh-What…!?” Mia let out a cry, rolling out of the way of one of the Shadow’s knives as it tried to stab her. The gun was now laying at her feet. The Shadow’s weapon was stuck into the ground. It was trapped. And Mia had a chance. She snatched up the gun, scrambling onto her feet. She turned to face the creature. The gun shook in her grip.

_“Pull the trigger,_ ” echoed the voice in Mia’s head. _“Only you can. Pull the trigger!”_

“Let go!” Lana shouted, still trying to stand.

_ Lana… And you… _ The voice in her head… the one that always spoken up about danger, no matter how minor it was… and no matter how many times Mia tried to get it to stop, it kept on going. _ What are you…? _

_ “You already know.”  _ There was a giggle.

_ “Go on… You know what to do.” _ Who was… Who was  _ that _ ? 

Mia shook her head. She didn’t know what she was doing. Adrenaline flooded her system. Instinct took over. A single word echoed in the back of her mind.

“Per… so… na…?” Something about this… it felt right. Tightening her grip on the gun, Mia pressed the barrel to her temple. She felt something beating wildly in her heart. She gritted her teeth, staring down the demon with cold, grey eyes. “ _ PERSONA _ !”

Mia pulled the trigger.

Her mind instantly went clear with the shattering of glass. She felt the power surge through her body, the wind whipping at her hair and clothes. She felt a grin twist its way onto her face. This feeling… It was absolutely  _ euphoric _ .

Out of the corner of her eye, Mia caught something taking shape behind her. It was a feminine figure with a robotic looking body. A shredded, silvery-white dress adorned her. A tattered veil was tangled up in reddish-brown hair. A green snake had embedded its fangs into the figure’s ankle, and wound its body around the rest of the leg.

“ _ I am thou, thou art I. From the sea of thy soul, I cometh. _ ” echoed the figure into the cold air of the night. That voice… Mia knew that voice. There was no way she could forget it. It was the one in her head. _ “I am Eurydice, a nymph of justice and spirit of death. _ ”

And that’s when everything began to feel… wrong.

The grin disappeared. Mia dropped the gun. An unimaginable pain exploded inside of her head. A scream tore itself from her throat as she doubled over and grabbed her head in a meger attempt to make it stop. The figure about Mia convulsed and shuddered. Its face cracked and broke. Something else crawled out. Something horrible...  A dark coat… a skeletal face… surrounded by suspended coffins… a sword glinting in the moonlight… That’s all Mia could make out in her tears. She let out another scream as the thing tore the figure apart, making Mia’s skull feel like it was being smashed from the inside out.

With a roar, the thing rocketed forward. It pinned down the Shadow, grabbing it and pulling it far above the ground. It slashed it clean in two with its blade. The Shadow’s severed limbs twitched, flailing around in pain. The thing grabbed them, shredding them to pieces and squishing them into black goo.

It hovered in the air, letting out one more roar. There was a flicker of light. The thing had vanished, replaced by the figure Mia had summoned. The coldness monster’s power echoed in her body. Mia glanced behind her. Lana was standing now, though her face was red. She didn’t look hurt, aside from the weird stance she was taking. In fact she looked really… blurry…

The energy that once was overpowering Mia’s body as fading away all too fast. Her limbs grew weak, and her eyelids grew heavy. She locked eyes with Lana before dropping onto the roof like a stone in water. The pain from before dulled out, throbbing against her skull. Lana rushed over to Mia’s side. 

“Are you okay!? Come on…! Please…! Can you hear me!?” She could feel the upperclassman take a hold of her shoulders, shaking her. Her eyelids were too heavy for her to open. Her mind was too jumbled to think of a word to say. Lana shook her again. “Answer me! “

Mia drifted into unconsciousness.

 

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah. That happened.
> 
> I might be doing the image thing for everyone's Personas, as well as their ultimates. There are exceptions, since there is a canon member of SEES I plan to incorporate later on. But we'll cross that road when we get there.
> 
> Anyway, there's a higher quality version of the image above on my tumblr, as well as the image with just Eurydice and without the effects. If you wanna check that out, let me know and I'll add the link into the notes here.
> 
>  
> 
> I also have yet to decide if social links will be incorporated into the story. If they are, I'm only going to do the social links involving the members of SEES to kind of keep things from getting out of hand. That. And there aren't enough characters for that. There's about two more chapters before I get to the social links, so I have a while to figure all that out.


	3. Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mia wakes up after her ordeal on the rooftop and finally gets an explanation as to what exactly happened, as well as the reason for the mysterious behavior of those who live in the dorm.

**???**

**???**

**The Velvet Room**

 

Mia didn’t remember much. The throbbing in her head had finally faded and the lead feeling in her limbs was going away. There was a strange melody playing at the edge of her senses. That music… She forced her eyes open. Mia was sitting in a familiar blue room. At least the lighting here wasn’t harsh. But...

What was this place…? The more time she had for her eyes to adjust, the more she came to realize… That’s right… this was called the Velvet Room, wasn’t it? And… wait… Why was she here? The last thing Mia could remember was being on the rooftop with Lana and—

Lana. The rooftop. That monstrous blob… and the gun. It was all coming back to her now. That surge of power and energy… the voice in her head… was that… did that really happen?

“It’s so nice to see you again.” Mia jumped at the sound of the calm voice. Before her once again were a long-nosed man and stewardess… Igor and Elizabeth were their names, right?

“You became unconscious after awakening to your ‘power’,” Igor continued, not taking his eyes off of Mia as he spoke. “I see that it was Eurydice that was released. That power is called Persona… It is a manifestation of your psyche.”

“My… Persona?” Mia repeated, rubbing at her throat to try and ease the hoarseness of her voice. Eurydice… right. Now she remembered. That being that had stood behind her. Wasn’t that what she called herself? Was that the name of the voice in her head? Igor gave Mia a nod.

“A Persona is a facet of your personality that surfaces as you react to external stimuli… You can think of it as a mask that protects you as you brave many hardships.” Even after that explanation, Mia wasn’t entirely sure what Igor was talking about.

“That’s what Eurydice is, isn’t she?” she asked, unsure of what else to say. Igor didn’t give her so much as a nod. Mia could only assume that the answer was yes.

“When you use your Persona ability, you must channel your inner strength. The ability evolves as you develop your Social Links — your emotional ties with others. The stronger your Social Links, the more powerful your Persona ability. Please remember that. Now, then… Time marches on in your world. I shouldn’t keep you here any longer. Next time we meet, you will come here of your own accord. Until then… Farewell.”

The melody grew quiet, and before Mia could understand what was happening, her eyes were drifting closed. She fell asleep once more. However, with the encounter still fresh, Mia’s mind began to race. Her ability… was that what Igor was talking about the last time they spoke? The power to summon a Persona… and there was her Persona itself. The being that called itself Eurydice.

_ Eurydice…  _ Mia thought as she felt things around her morphing into a blank dream. She had heard that name before… in a book on myths that her mother kept in the small living space of their home.  _ She was the nymph Orpheus was meant to marry… but she died… and when he went to bring her back from the underworld… he broke the one rule Hades had given him. He looked at her, and she was lost to him until he himself died… That… That’s me…? _

 

* * *

 

 

**September 25, 2005**

**10:53 PM**

**???**

 

Her head was starting to clear as she forced her eyes open. Her ears caught the sound of a steady beeping. The strong scent of antiseptic filled her nostrils. She stared at the white ceiling hanging above. Mia tried to move her body. It was heavy, and stiffness ached her joints. How long had she been asleep?

...and why did she feel like something was pinning her down? With a small groan, Mia pushed herself up. With her mind getting back into the right place, she slowly began to realize what had happened. She was stripped of her pajamas and had been dressed in a gown. There was an IV stuck into her arm, and she was connected to a heart monitor. Mia was in the hospital.

She glanced down on the bed. Whatever had been holding her blanket down turned out to be a whoever. Lana had been sleeping by Mia’s bedside, roused from her slumber when Mia had sat up. Teal eyes blinked blearily at her.

“You’re awake…” she said, greeting Mia with a sleepy smile.

“Lana…?” was all Mia really could think of to say. She didn’t expect for Lana to be there.

“Yeah.” Lana let out a groan as she sat up, stretching out her limbs as she did so. There a stagnant silence hanging in the air, broken when Lana cleared her throat. “Um… so… how do you feel?”

“Dizzy…” Mia sighed, raking a hand through her hair. Her throat was really dry, and her voice was coming out hoarser than she wanted it to. What Mia did want, though, was to down an entire bottle of water.

“Oh thank God.” Mia glanced over at Lana, who cleared her throat again. “Well… I mean, you finally came to, so…” Mia let out another sigh. She let her eyes take in the view of the room.

“Where am I…?”

“Tatsumi Memorial Hospital. We brought you here after you collapsed.” Wait, did Lana just say we? And collapsed? “The doctor couldn’t find anything wrong with you. He said you were just exhausted… Um…”

“I… collapsed…?” Lana nodded. Mia groaned as memories of the other night came flooding back into her mind again. Even in the waking world, her recollection was fuzzy. “Right… I collapsed…”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything…” It wasn’t her fault, Mia wanted to say. But with how fast the events of that night had gone, she wasn’t sure if Lana was wrong or right. Hell, Mia wasn’t even sure what those things on the rooftop with them were. That black blob, that creature that tore her head apart… “But, your Persona… It was amazing.”

“Lana…” Mia sat up a little straighter, “what exactly happened on the roof? What was that thing?”

“You mean the Shadow?” Not exactly what Mia meant, but sure. “It’s what we’re fighting against. One of many. And that power you used… your Persona…” Lana sighed, shaking her head. Yeah, the Persona thing. Igor’s explanation at least cleared that part up. “They can explain it better than I can. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before.”

“It’s fine,” Mia said, giving Lana a soft smile, “Don’t worry about it.” Lana stood out of the chair she had fallen asleep in, gathering the bag by her feet. Mia could see the sleeve of her school’s jacket hanging out of the side. Had she come here straight from school? Lana stopped halfway between the bed and the door. She sighed, turning back to Mia.

“I uh… I wanted to tell you that… I’m sorta like you,” said Lana. Was she talking about the Persona thing? Could she do it too? ...the more she thought about it, the more it made sense that Lana could do it. She was going to pull the trigger on the gun and shoot herself, much like Mia had… she would have done it too, if it wasn’t for her.

“My parents died in an accident a few years ago,” Lana continued. “All I have is my little sister. You’ve lost someone too, right? Your father.”

Mia’s hands dropped in her lap. She was quiet. Her father… That… That was not something she really wanted to talk about him first thing when she woke up. But, despite Mia’s silence, Lana still went on.

“To be honest, I already knew that. Angel was reading your file, and I happened to look over her shoulder. It didn’t seem fair, so I wanted to tell you about my parents to make up for it. It was back in 2001.” 2001… Mia curled her hands around the edges of the sheet. Why did it have to be 2001? “My sister was just a baby… she wasn’t even a year old yet… There was a big explosion and they got caught up in it. Nobody really knows what happened. They won’t tell me either, despite the fact that it was my family’s company that ran the lab. I’m sure you’ve heard of them. The Skye Corporation?”

Mia blinked.

“The Skye Corporation…” she repeated. Lana nodded. The Skye Corporation. Since it’s merge with Trinity almost twenty years ago, the company had risen to power as a global phenomenon. It had gotten to the point where it was involved in almost every aspect of daily life. To find that someone didn’t know them in this day and age was rare, which is exactly why Mia groaned at Lana’s confirmation. “How did I not figure that out…?

“Yeah. I’m hoping if I stick around long enough, I’ll be able to find out something. That’s one of the reasons I’m at Gekkoukan… why I was there when this happened to you.” Lana sighed, tapping her foot against the tile. “Of course… I wasn’t much help after that thing hit me. You wouldn’t have gone through that if I was able to summon my Persona.” Mia sat up, staring at Lana.

“You can… You have one too?” Mia wasn’t the only one who could do that? Lana gave her a nod.

“Yes,” she said. “We all do.” Mia raised an eyebrow.

“We?” There were more out there like them?

“I’ll… explain it later. I don’t want to hide the truth from you anymore, so…” Lana shifted the bag on her shoulder. “Thanks for listening, actually. I’ve been wanting to share that story for a long time.”

“No problem,” Mia replied with a shrug.” The moment of silence that had been there when Mia first woke up fell again.

“I have to get going,” said Lana quickly. “I have to be back at the dorm before midnight. I’ll let everyone else know you woke up.” She turned, making her way towards the door. She turned back after she opened it. “…Oh, and, uh… You don’t have to be formal around me or anything. Us girls gotta stick up for each other, after all. I-I’m going to go tell the nurses you woke up.” Lana left without another word.

Mia sighed, leaning back in the bed. She glanced out the window. The city was lit up with artificial light. Everyone down there… they were normal. Mia, on the other hand… She always knew she was different. But this? The power of Persona wasn’t what she expected. She also hadn’t expected for there to be others out there like her. It was… kind of comforting actually. She wasn’t alone.

Mia could spot Gekkoukan in the distance. Another thought hit her. She had to head back to school tomorrow. Mia let out a long, frustrated groan. There was going to be so much work for her to make up…!

 

* * *

 

 

**September 26, 2005**

**3:07 PM**

**Port Island Monorail**

 

Much to Mia’s chagrin, there was a nice little pile of work waiting for her when she returned to Gekkoukan. Other than having to struggle to carry all that she had missed for the week onto the monorail, there wasn’t anything of much importance that happened at school. No one had seemed to notice her absence. Well… Almost no one.

“Hey, Fey!” Neil called out, rushing onto the monorail just as the doors closed. He stumbled into the car, colliding with Mia and Lana. He nearly knocked the girls over with his weight.

“Neil!” said Mia, the happiness in her voice unconcealed when she felt Neil’s arm wrap around her. She had been unlucky enough that she hadn't seen him all day. This… this was surprised that she welcomed with literal open arms. Lana, on the other hand...

“Marshall…” Lana said with a groan. She pushed Neil off of her and Mia, allowing the three to straighten themselves out as the monorail began to move.

“Long time no see,” said Neil, his grin almost as wide as Mia’s. He ruffled Mia’s hair, making her giggle. The smile eased into a small smirk. “You okay? Heard you were in the hospital.”

“Yeah,” Mia told him with a nod. “Just exhaustion.” ...well, it wasn’t a total lie. That’s what Lana said made her collapse in the first place.

“Not even a full month into the school year and you collapse?” Mia exchanged a quick look with Lana.

“Something like that.” She hated having to lie to Neil but… she doubted that he would believe her if she told him the truth. That, and they were on a crowded train. Lana cleared her throat to nab Neil’s attention.

“You’re full of energy today,” she remarked, leaning up against one of the train’s walls. “Actually sleep last night?” Neil gave her a nod.

“Like a baby,” he replied. Lana raised a brow.

“No midnight study sessions?” Midnight what now?

“Yes…” Lana narrowed her gaze. Mia could see Neil’s calm, cool persona beginning to crack under the weight of Lana’s stare. He chuckled nervously as the train lurched, slowly coming to a halt. Neil glanced out the window. “Oh, would you look at that. This is my stop. See you ladies tomorrow!”

“Uh-huh…” Lana let out a heavy sigh as Neil darted out the train door as fast as his feet could carry him. Mia pouted, tightening the grip on her bag’s strap. She wanted to talk to Neil a little longer. What was that all about? “Are you sure you’re feeling better, Mia?”

“Absolutely,” said Mia. “Now I know how Sleeping Beauty felt when she was woken up.” Lana let out another sigh.

“Um… sorry to hit you with this, but Mr. Gant wants to talk to you.”

“He does?” Mia asked, raising a brow. Why did Gant want to talk to her? He was the chairman of the school, he probably had better things to do than visit a mere student. ...then again, he was the one who ordered Lana and Angel to watch over her.

“Yeah. It’s nothing too big. Remember that explanation I owe you?” Mia nodded as the train’s doors closed and the monorail started to move once more. “Well, you’re about to get it.”

 

* * *

 

 

**September 26**

**3:39 PM**

**Iwatodai Dormitory**

**Fourth Floor**

 

Mia could feel her nerves twist and tangle themselves in the pit of her stomach. She was finally getting the explanation she deserved but… what it was exactly… that’s what was causing this anxiety. Anything that involved those Personas and… whatever Lana had called those monster things could not have been good. Lana lead Mia up to the top floor of the dorm without so much as a hint as to what was waiting for her underclassman. She was quiet as she swung open the door to the only room on that level. Mia stood there, mouth agape as she stared at the room before her. 

It was tinted green, with the curtains from the windows were drawn tight. Only a few scattered lamps providing light. In the far corner of the room was a series of computers and equipment that were pulled out straight from a science fiction novel. In the center was a warmer looking area. There were a few sofas, much like in the lounge downstairs. They were surrounding a table, on which sat a silver briefcase. Angel, the chairman and a male student that Mia didn’t recognize sat there. Whatever conversation they were having broke when Lana opened the door.

“Ah, there you are,” said Gant, snapping Mia from her stupor. “I’m glad that you’re okay. I wasn’t sure what I’d do if anything had happened to you.” Mia only found the strength to give off a nervous smile. Lana reached out, taking her wrist.

“They’re not going to bite,” she said, keeping her voice low before letting Mia slip through her hand. Mia nodded. She followed Lana to the small little meeting circle, taking a seat next to her on the only remaining sofa. Why did her anxiety get worse just now?

“I’m sure Skye explained to you why you’re here.” Mia only gave Mr. Gant a nod. “Before that, I believe I mentioned him the other day, but this is Diego Armando, the other student living in this building with you and Skye.” He gestured to the young man sitting on his right.

“Hey,” said the stranger, giving Mia only a short nod and a flashy grin. Mia stared at him an eyebrow raised.

_ He’s a high school student?  _ That couldn’t be right. He looked like he was around Angel’s age. Mia sighed, shaking her head. Now wasn’t the time to focus on that. She would get that answer later, just like how she was getting the answers to the myriad of questions she had come up with upon arriving at Gekkoukan that strange night.

“Um… Mr. Gant, I came here to get an explanation,” said Mia with a clear of her throat as she turned her attention back to the chairman, “Not to be introduced to one of my roommates.”

“Quick and to the point,” said Gant with a smirk. Mia swallowed down the lump of anticipation forming in her throat, letting her fingers curl around the fabric of her skirt. “Let me start off by asking you this: Would you believe me if I said that a day consists of more than twenty-four hours?” Mia stared at him.

“Excuse me?” Had she heard him right? A single day was only twenty-four hours; that was something that everyone learned back in kindergarten. What kind of way was that to start off the conversation?

“Do you remember the night you came here?” Angel said with a sigh. Mia bit her lip, allowing the memories of her first night in Iwatodai to flood into her mind.

“Kinda?” It had been a couple of weeks since her arrival. Things from then weren’t the clearest, but the important details stood out in her mind. “The street lights went out… my phone wasn’t working. Actually nothing was working, everything had suddenly gone off… not to mention there were coffins everywhere. Felt like I was in a different time. Or a horror movie. Maybe both.”

“That’s the Dark Hour — a time period hidden between one day and the next.” Mia raised an eyebrow.

“Hidden?” she repeated. Angel nodded.

“I guess it’s more like something people aren’t aware of,” said Gant, explaining what Angel had meant. “But, the Dark Hour does exist. It occurs each night at midnight. It’ll happen tonight, and every night to come.”

“Normal people don’t realize it, since they’re all sleeping inside those coffins,” said Diego, picking up where the chairman left off. He smirked, leaning forward. “But that’s not what makes the Dark Hour so interesting.” Mia felt her nails start to dig into her thighs through her uniform. The only thing that she could think of was what he had to be talking about, right?

“...the Shadows…?” she said, earning herself a nod. It sounded crazy now that it had all been said out loud. A hidden hour between eleven o’clock and midnight that was filled with horrible monsters? But still… given what she had seen… it was the only thing that seemed to make a lick of sense.

“They only appear during the Dark Hour, and attack anyone who's out in the open. It’s our job to defeat them,” Diego continued, his smirk only seeming to get wider. “ …Sounds exciting, eh?”

“Why are you like this?” said Angel, glaring over at Diego. “You just got hurt the other day!” Diego’s eyes narrowed, darting over to meet the one Angel was showing as he frowned. He opened his mouth to fire of a reply, only to have any word stopped by Gant’s chuckle.

“Now, now. He does his work well,” said the chairman. Angel and Diego relaxed, their expressions falling to the neutral state that had been in when Mia arrived. Their eyes, however, still showed a bit of animosity. “Long story short… We’re the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad—SEES for short. On paper, we’re classified as a school club. But in reality, this group is dedicated to defeating the Shadows. Ms. Starr is the club advisor.”

“I don’t get it,” said Mia with a shrug. “Besides the attacking people thing, what’s so bad about Shadows?” Angel turned her steely gaze onto her, making the girl freeze in her seat.

“A Shadow feeds on the mind of its prey; the victim becomes a living corpse,” said Angel. Oh. “They’re responsible for most of the incidents on the news, if not all of them.”

“And you… fight them…? Using those Persona things… right?” Angel nodded. To Mia, this whole thing felt like some kind of surreal show that Maya would watch on Saturday mornings, the kind where some chosen group of warriors had to fight to save the world from evil. But if Mia recalled correctly, none of those shows included having to shoot yourself in the head to summon some sort of otherworldly extension of yourself. Mostly drawn-out transformation sequences and attacks.

“Although rare, there are those who can function during the Dark Hour. Some may even awaken to a power that enables them to fight the Shadows. That’s ‘Persona’—the power you used the other night,” Gant explained, snapping Mia out of her reverie. “The Shadows can only be defeated by Persona-users. Which means, it’s all up to you.”

“I…” Mia bit down on her lip. Way to put the weight of the world on the shoulders of a sixteen year old girl. “I see.” Gant was smiling.

“I’m glad you’re quick to understand.” He turned to Angel, giving her a nod. She leaned forward, opening the silver case that sat on the table. She spun it around, pushing it in front of Mia. A silver gun gleamed inside. The letters “S-E-E-S” were engraved on the barrel.

“What he’s trying to say is that we want you to join us,” said Angel, switching to a softer eye. Mia stared down at the gun. She recognized it. “We’ve prepared an Evoker for you — the thing you used to summon your Persona the other night.”

If the Shadows attacked anyone during the Dark Hour, then Mia really didn’t have much of a choice. Not like she wanted one, anyway. There was something beating in her heart. Something that urged her to say yes. This power that she was given… if she could use it to help people… She could save people, like how she saved Lana that night on the rooftop. Like how she couldn’t that night… on the rbridge…

Mia bit her lip harder. Lives were on the line here. And they wanted her to join them. There was no way she was going to back down now that she realized that. There were people that needed her protection. After a moment of heavy silence in the air, Mia nodded.

“Alright,” she said, taking the gun… Evoker into her hands. “Alright, I’ll do it!”

“I was afraid you would say no,” Lana sighed, a grin of relief stretching out on her face. “Welcome aboard!” A slow clap came from Gant.

“Thank you so much. I’m really glad,” said the chairman. “Oh, I almost forgot… About your room assignment… Why don’t you just stay here, in your current room? I don’t know what the holdup is, but I guess it worked out in the end.” He chuckled.

“Holdup? But, wasn’t that—” Mia glanced over at Lana, who then laughed nervously when Angel and Diego sent a glare her way. “Oh, never mind…” Wait… was Mia’s accidental dorm assignment on purpose?!

She sighed, shaking her head. She was tired. Tired from her stay at the hospital… tired from the day’s events… Everything had left her tired. Mia excused herself quickly. She made her way downstairs to her room, taking her brand new Evoker with her.

That… was a lot to take in. But at least finally things were starting to make some sort of sense, however unbelievable they may be.

 

* * *

 

 

**September 26**

**The Dark Hour**

**Iwatodai Dormitory**

**Room 306**

 

Mia woke up at the stroke of midnight. At least, she guessed it was midnight. The world outside had fallen to the holds of the Dark Hour. She slowly sat up when she felt a weight sink into the mattress. She went still as stone. The weird girl from the first night in the Iwatodai dorm was sitting at the foot of Mia’s bed.

“Hi,” said the girl, twirling a ratted pigtail around one of her fingers, a soft smile on her face. “How are you?”

“How did you get here?” was the first thing Mia asked upon her senses coming back to working order.

“I’m always with you…” the girl said with a chuckle. Well, that definitely wasn’t creepy at all… “Soon, the end will come. I remembered so I thought I should tell you.”

“… thanks…?” That was good to know. But… why the hell was this girl telling her that? And how did she get into her bedroom?! The girl let out a breathy laugh.

“I wasn’t expecting you to thank me. But you’re welcome.” The smile melted away as the girl furrowed her brow. “That… is what I’m supposed to say, right? …I don’t really know what this ‘end’ is about, either. “ Mia straighten up, leaning forward on her knees. She raised a brow.

“Everything okay?” The little girl nodded. Even then, Mia wasn’t sure if she was okay at all. Her little sister would do the same thing when she was sad about something and didn’t want her mother or sister to know about it.

“You’ve awakened to your power… and an unusual power it is.” She was changing the subject. “A power that takes many forms, yet is bound by none… It may prove to be your salvation, depending on where you end up. Do you remember when we first met? I expect you to honor your commitment. I’ll be watching you, even if you forget about me… Okay then, see you later.”

The girl disappeared with a giggle and a sly smile that left the chill lingering in Mia’s spine.

Even after all she had been told earlier, mentioning the strange little girl had appeared in her room seemed like a bad idea. When she had brought it up before, the members of S.E.E.S. had just stared at her like she grew a second head.

Mia sighed. She was thinking too much about this. She needed her sleep. She turned over in her bed, letting her dreams take her away from reality. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next time on Burn My Dread:
> 
> Chapter Four: The Shadows of Tartarus
> 
> AKA Mia goes on a trip into Shadow Hell.

**Author's Note:**

> I know that this chapter was a bit slow and exposition-y, but I promise that we'll get to some plot stuff next time. And Personas.  
> Speaking of plot, if anyone wants me to stick to the plot and not write in social links, I will to keep the fic's flow smoother. If you do want to see social links, then just let me know because that will make the fic a whole lot longer.  
> Anyway, feedback is always appreciated because this drawn-out tale is just getting started!


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